Rahul Gandhi to retain Raebareli seat, Priyanka Gandhi to contest from Wayanad
As per the rules, Rahul Gandhi, who won both Wayanad and Raebareli seats, has to decide within 14 days of the results which seat he would retain
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will retain his Raebareli seat while his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will contest from Wayanad, the party announced on Monday.
The decision came after top party leaders, including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, general secretaries KC Venugopal and Priyanka Gandhi held a meeting at the residence of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to decide which Lok Sabha seat Rahul Gandhi would retain.
The meeting started after 5.30pm under Kharge’s chairmanship.
Rahul won from Wayanad—his seat from 2019—as well as Raebareli, a constituency with a rich legacy of the Gandhi family. As per the rules, Gandhi has to decide within 14 days of the results which seat he would retain.
There were indications that he might prefer to retain Raebareli. The presence of Priyanka Gandhi in this meeting was significant as expectations were rife that she might fight in the seat vacated by Rahul. Whichever seat Rahul vacates, the next MP will be elected through a by-election.
A senior Congress leader maintained that for the Congress, winning a by-poll would be easier in Kerala than UP.
A few days ago, a top-ranking Congress leader said Rahul Gandhi has already “decided” which of the two Lok Sabha seats – Wayanad in Kerala and Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh – that he won in the general elections he would retain and whether he would accept the Leader of Opposition (LoP)’s post in the Lower House, top party leaders said on Thursday.
Both the decisions would be announced at an “appropriate time,” a top party leader said, seeking anonymity.
The leader also said that during an informal interaction, a top-ranking Congress leader agreed to a suggestion that fielding party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Wayanad, if Rahul vacated the seat he occupied in the previous term, would be a good idea to keep the voters happy.
The leader said that for Gandhi, the LoP’s post is “important” but handling organisational responsibilities is also paramount.
“A decision has been made. But it will not be divulged now. The LoP post is important but managing organisational responsibilities (for Rahul) is equally important,” the leader said.
There would be no change in the Rajya Sabha LoP which is held by Mallikarjun Kharge.
